To all Mass preparers

[kcjenkins]

The juvenile court judge in the long-running Justina Pelletier custody case delayed issuing a ruling Friday on a motion to return the teenager to her Connecticut home.

A lawyer for the girl’s parents and a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, which has had legal custody of Pelletier for more than a year, said the judge sent word that he will instead notify the parties of his decision by the end of the day on Tuesday. Judge Joseph Johnston had pledged during a hearing Monday to rule by the end of the week, and there was no explanation provided for the new delay.

The motion, presented by the 15-year-old’s court-appointed lawyer and the lawyers for her parents, Linda and Lou Pelletier of West Hartford, Conn., calls for the parents to be awarded “conditional custody” of their 15-year-old daughter. Johnston would be able to revoke the parents’ custody if they violate the terms of the agreement, which includes ensuring that Justina receives proper medical care and schooling.

Meanwhile her older sister Jennifer is pleading with friends and campaigners to do all they can to support Justina. Devastated by the delays in getting medication for her sister, she tweeted Friday that armed guards sit in on visits while she is with Justina and that she is increasingly worried about her condition.

All this while, IN THE SAME STATE, accused terrorist Tsarnev (from the Marathon bombing last year) gets *unlimited* medical care, MULTIPLE visits per week -- unsupervised -- with family and friends, and multiple phone calls.

Justina Pelletier would have BETTER TREATMENT FROM MASSACHUSETTS AS AN ACCUSED TERRORIST. Or any other kind of convicted, violent felon.

It is disgusting how these innocent people are being treated by this judge and by the state. I hope every Massachusetts voter raises hell over this, letters to Editors, letters to government officials, discussions at church groups, social clubs and such. This gets more outrageous every day it continues.

[Catherine]

OUTRAGEOUS!!! This just in: that miserable scum of a judge awarded the child-ABUSING state DCF PERMANENT custody of this child. Thereby signing her DEATH WARRANT as her health is failing under DCF "management."

http://michaelgraham.com/outrage-in-pelletier-case-corrupt-ma-judge-awards-state-permanent-custody-of-justina/

[kcjenkins]

OMG! WHY is this allowed to happen? Can't anyone get enough people to raise their voices? Where are the churches that should be protesting this horrible situation?

[Catherine]

Latest press release about a Mass. Supreme Court filing

http://www.lc.org/index.cfm?PID=14100&PRID=1433

as well as a note smuggled by Justina to her parents

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/15/shocking-note-apparently-penned-by-justina-pelletier-to-her-parents/

[Catherine]

Latest update -- *FINALLY* the DCF commissioner gave in to pressure to resign. A necessary - but not sufficient - step towards freeing Justina.

http://hosted2.ap.org/wrko/afb5c11d61c140368f0a3bb63800228a/Article_2014-04-29-US-Massachusetts-Child-Welfare/id-fdb1dba7f8f447998ab21191e770ee86

[kcjenkins]

Well, that's a start, but only a tiny step. The whole department is clearly got a lot of rotten employees, based on the number of lost kids, etc, and it is really difficult to fire government employees, even totally incompetent ones. But hopefully, a new head of the department will want to get the spotlight of Justina's case turned off. We need to keep the spotlight bright.

[kcjenkins]

LATEST UPDATE:

The teen at the center of a custody battle triggered by differing diagnoses by two Massachusetts hospitals will be transferred from the Bay State to a facility in her home state of Connecticut, according to Massachusetts officials, but her parents are not welcoming the decision.

Secretary of Health and Human Services John Polanowicz said Monday the "reunification" plan calls for 15-year-old Justina Pelletier to be transferred to a facility in Thompson, Conn., as the first step in a process that could eventually return her to the custody of her parents. A judge will make the final decision to return Justina to her family.

The Connecticut facility "will provide services to Justina with the ultimate goal of her returning home as soon as possible," writes John Polanowicz, secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, to Massachusetts lawmakers in a letter obtained by FoxNews.com. The announcement, however, has infuriated the girl's parents, Lou and Linda Pelletier, of West Hartford, who claim the move is "not at all meant as a step toward regaining custody" and called it "barbaric."

"They’re just shipping her off to another psychiatric facility," Lou Pelletier told FoxNews.com Tuesday. "It’s disgusting." "They’re totally ignoring her physical needs," he said, citing a heart condition the girl suffers from that Pelletier claims has gone untreated since the teen was transferred to Boston Children's Hospital last year.

DCF said conditions of Pelletier's return include her family attending visits at the Connecticut facility; following through with a care plan outlined by Tufts Medical Center; attending family therapy; and meeting with DCF to review her progress.

Pelletier spent a year in a psychiatric ward at Boston Children's Hospital despite her family's objections and a diagnosis from Tufts Medical Center that she suffered from a mitochondrial disorder.

While many facts are in dispute, one thing is clear: Justina Pelletier spent the past year in a locked psych ward, even though doctors disagree about whether her condition is psychiatric.

[Catherine]

And I will point out yet again that IF the DCF was correct, her physical condition would -- at the VERY least -- have stayed the same. Most likely, it would have improved substantially without the "excess treatment" they accuse her family of subjecting her to.

Except the truth is that this girl was an ice-skating _competitor_ a mere two weeks before her hospitalization -- and is now confined to a wheelchair because she cannot walk.

I also want to know how the BCH doctor who started this whole thing got in to see her in the first place, when she was sent to BCH to confer with one -specific- doctor (who had transferred there from Tufts).

The whole thing stinks to high heavens from start to finish.

[kcjenkins]

YEP.

[kcjenkins]

this made me think of all my northern friends:

[Catherine]

Happened to us -- snow avalanched off our solar panels. You would not believe the amount of noise it made! That snow was packed *solid* too -- my poor shrubs will spend this summer coming up recovering. Next fall I will have to build lean-to's to cover them.

[Catherine]

On her way to CT where the Connecticut state courts will have jurisdiction. Here's hoping THEY do the right thing and get this girl back home where she belongs! Make no mistake, public pressure is the ONLY reason she is even getting this close to home! DCF just yesterday cancelled the family's "Mother's Day" visit -- what possible reason could they have had other then pettiness and a final assertion of power?

http://rabidrepublicanblog.com/2014/05/12/justina-en-route-to-connecticut/

[kcjenkins]

As a mother and grandmother, that just makes me sick to my stomach. What sort of heartless, inhumane person denies a sick child even a brief visit with her mother on Mother's Day? If that governor is re-elected, that state is beyond redemption. Disgusting.

[Catherine]

FINALLY!

http://www.lc.org/index.cfm?PID=14100&PRID=1448

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Press Release

June 6, 2014

Massachusetts HHS Files Motion to Free Justina

LC.org

Boston, MA —Today, Massachusetts Health and Human Services (HHS) filed a motion for review of reconsideration and dismissal in the case of Justina Pelletier. This action follows Liberty Counsel’s motion to return Justina home. Today’s motion indicates that HHS is in agreement to return custody of Justina to her parents.

Liberty Counsel anticipates a court order from Judge Johnson in the near future releasing Justina into the custody of her parents, Lou and Linda Pelletier.

“We are thrilled that Justina will soon be returning home,” said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. “The family is thankful for everyone’s prayers and support. Since coming on this case in late-February, we have worked day and night and throughout the weekends to free Justina. The family looks forward to putting this 16-month nightmare behind them. It is hard to express the joy that the Pelletier family is experiencing as they look forward to being reunited as a family,” Staver concluded.

More details will be forthcoming when Justina is returned home.

Liberty Counsel is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family since 1989, by providing pro bono assistance and representation on these and related topics.

[Catherine]

Here's the sick part: was this girl, held captive for 16 months, used as one of the test subjects in THIS medical experiment -- results published just last month? State law allows children in state custody to be included in medical experimentation without the approval/knowledge of parents. If so, this is right up there with Mengele's work.

http://journals.lww.com/jpgn/pages/articleviewer.aspx?year=2014&issue=05000&article=00011&type=abstract

Depression Subtypes in Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Szigethy, Eva M.^†; Youk, Ada O.^‡; Benhayon, David^†; Fairclough, Diane L.^§; Newara, Melissa C.^†; Kirshner, Margaret A.^†; Bujoreanu, Simona I.^||; Mrakotsky, Christine^||; Bousvaros, Athos^¶; Srinath, Arvind I.^*; Keljo, David J.^*; Kupfer, David J.^†; DeMaso, David R.^||

Abstract

Objective: The association between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and depression provides a unique opportunity to understand the relation between systemic inflammation and depressive symptom profiles.

Methods: Youth (n = 226) ages 9 to 17 years with comorbid IBD and depression underwent psychiatric assessment and evaluation of IBD activity. Latent profile analysis (LPA) identified depressive subgroups based on similar responses to the Children's Depression Rating Scale-Revised. Demographic factors, depression severity, anxiety, IBD activity, inflammatory markers, IBD-related medications, and illness perception were evaluated as predictors of profile membership.

Results: Mean age was 14.3 years; 75% had Crohn disease; 31% were taking systemic corticosteroids. Mean depressive severity was moderate, whereas IBD activity, which reflects inflammation, was mild. LPA identified 3 subgroups: Profile-1 (mild, 75%) had diverse low-grade depressive symptoms and highest quality of life; Profile-2 (somatic, 19%) had severe fatigue, appetite change, anhedonia, decreased motor activity, and depressed mood with concurrent high-dose steroid therapy and the highest IBD activity; and Profile-3 (cognitive, 6%) had the highest rates of self-reported depressive symptoms, ostomy placements, and anxiety with IBD symptoms in the relative absence of inflammation.

Conclusions: Evidence was found for 3 depression profiles in youth with IBD and depression. Our analyses determined that patients with predominantly somatic or cognitive symptoms of depression comprised 25% of our cohort. These findings may be used to design subgroup-specific interventions for depression in adolescents with IBD and other physical illnesses associated with systemic inflammation.

© 2014 by European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition and North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology,

[kcjenkins]

It's sick what they did to her, whether they included her in that study or not. But I'm thanking God that she is FINALLY going to be freed from her kidnappers.

[kcjenkins]

Justina Pelletier makes tearful plea to judge, asking to go home

http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/fn2/video/612/344/060914_justina_message_640.jpg?ve=1&tl=1

Justina Pelletier, the Connecticut teen taken from her family more than a year ago by Massachusetts officials after her parents took her to a hospital for help, made a tearful plea to the Bay State family court judge who holds her fate in his hands.

In the 45-second, videotaped plea, first posted on a Facebook page set up by supporters of the 15-year-old, Justina is seen sitting in a chair and pleading plaintively with Massachusetts juvenile court Judge Joseph Johnston.

"All I really want is to be with my family and friends," the girl says, her voice faltering at times. "You can do it. You're the one that's judging this. Please let me go home."

Justina also directs her plea to Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, whose state Department of Children and Families made the initial decision to commit the girl to state care on Valentine’s Day 2013 after doctors at Tufts Medical Center, which had been treating her for a rare condition, and doctors as Boston Children’s Hospital clashed over the cause of her medical problems, which included difficulty eating and walking.

Justina was moved last month from the Bay State to a facility in Thompson, Conn. Her family is now somewhat closer to her, but still angry that their daughter can't come home.

At Tufts, Justina had been treated for mitochondrial disease, a group of rare genetic disorders affecting cellular energy production. When Justina began experiencing some gastrointestinal problems, the Tufts doctor treating her, Dr. Mark Korson, wanted the girl to visit Dr. Alejandro Flores at Boston Children's Hospital, according to the family's attorney, Phil Moran. Flores had treated Justina in the past, Moran said, and Korson thought it beneficial for the teen to see a gastroenterologist.

Justina was taken by ambulance to Boston Children's Hospital because she was in a wheelchair at the time and a heavy snowstorm was blanketing the region. To her family's surprise, she was diagnosed with somatoform disorder -- a mental condition in which a patient experiences symptoms that are real but have no physical or biological explanation.

The Pelletier family rejected the new psychiatric diagnosis and wanted to bring Justina back to Tufts. After tempers flared between the Pelletiers and staff at Boston Children's, the hospital notified the state that it suspected the parents of medical child abuse.

The girl was kept at Boston Children’s psychiatric ward for nearly a year before being moved to the Wayside Youth and Family Support Network facility in Framingham, Mass.

In March, Johnston issued a four-page ruling blasting Pelletier’s parents for being verbally abusive and complicating efforts to bring the family together. The Pelletiers, meanwhile, have claimed the Bay State bureaucracy has been aligned against the family from the beginning.

Pelletier has claimed Johnson ignored the testimony of his daughter's original doctors, who stand by the diagnosis of mitochondrial disease. Since the ordeal began, more than a year ago, the Pelletiers have only been allowed hourly visits each week with their daughter, whose condition, they say, has deteriorated. She has not attended school or church since the family lost custody of her, he said.

Last week, attorneys from Liberty Counsel, which represents the Pelletier family, filed a motion with Johnston requesting that Justina be returned to her home. The Massachusetts agency indicated that it will not object to the motion, according to Liberty attorneys.

“Today is a significant event for Justina and the Pelletier family,” said Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “We believe and hope that the Pelletier family will soon be reunited,” said Staver.

“After nearly 16 months of separation, Justina requires much healing - physically, emotionally, and spiritually,” said Staver. “The completion of the Plan is a very positive development and brings us almost full circle to where this process started, before DCF took custody of Justina: Tufts Medical Center is finally providing Justina’s healthcare once more,” said Staver.

[Catherine]

This article is missing one crucial point -- the judge placed a GAG order on the case, threatening any family member who spoke publicly about this egregious act on the part of BCF and the state DCF with jail time.

It was only after Justina's dad - more concerned about his daughter's health and well-being than about his own freedom - went public and stood up to the threat that ( a ) the judge backed down on the threat (after some saber-rattling) and ( b ) public pressure was enabled to be brought to bear on this case. Make no mistake, this girl is at least closer to home now because of a brave parent and public pressure.

[Catherine]

Fabulous news!!

http://www.redmassgroup.com/diary/18231/free-at-last-free-at-last-thank-god-almighty-justinas-free-at-last

Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty, Justina's free at last by: Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno Tue Jun 17, 2014 at 17:11:18 PM EDT Justina Pelletiers 16 month nightmare is over. A judge, today, ordered DCF to release Justina Pelletier to har parents. The Boston Globe has the story:

A Massachusetts juvenile court judge has returned custody of Connecticut teenager Justina Pelletier to her parents, effective Wednesday, according to the judge's ruling obtained by the Globe.

"I find that the parties have shown by credible evidence that circumstances have changed since the adjudication on Dec. 20, 2013, that Justina is a child in need of care and protection pursuant to G.L. c. 199, 24-26.," Judge Joseph Johnston wrote in the ruling. "Effective Wednesday, June 18, 2014, this care and protection petition is dismissed and custody of Justina is returned to her parents, Lou and Linda Pelletier."

The only thing that has changed is that Lou Pelletier spoke up, the judge finally saw that Tufts had a point, and her treatment by Tufts has been working.

While it is great that Justina Pelletier is going home, she can't get these almost two years of her life back. Children's Hospital, DCF, and those who publicly defamed the Pelletiers need to pay for this. I am anxiously anticipating the law suits.

[kcjenkins]

hurrah and hallelujah !!!!!

[Catherine]

Interview with Justina linked in the article that I am linking:

 

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/06/30/no-one-should-be-put-through-that-no-one-justina-pelletier-speaks-out-on-her-treatment-while-under-govt-care/

[Max W]

Since this is a tax forum, it should be pointed out that the parents are unable to claim Justina for 2013, but it looks like she got home just in time for 2014.

I had a client with a similar state custodial situation spanning 3 tax years and the parents were unable to claim the dependent for 2 of those 3 years.  Ironically, it was MA, the child being held for some criminal charges.

[Catherine]

Somehow I get the feeling they are not really worried about that piece; the dad risked being clapped in jail to make the story public (he was under a gag order - almost always reserved for criminal cases - for a year until he broke it out of worry for his daughter's deteriorating health).